Formerly known as CONCH. 'wave' is dedicated to our clients, the projects we’ve worked on together and the benefits that smart marketing, branding and advertising deliver.
When New Zealand’s iconic National Fieldays first gave naming rights to the Farmers Mutual Group in 1988 it was commonly referred to as a sponsorship, but in fact it went no further than a simple, and mutually beneficial, naming rights agreement.
Farmers Mutual paid the Fieldays in return for their name appearing in all media and signage produced by the Fieldays during a specified period. For Farmers Mutual to have their name associated with the most important event on New Zealand’s farming calendar was well targeted marketing that delivered excellent value for their investment. Of course they backed up their investment by having a strong presence at the Fieldays and so created a further dimension to their promotional activities.
The important thing to remember in any naming right activity or sponsorship is to fully capitalise on the event in as many ways as possible. Tell your clients and prospects what you are up to, create a sense of ownership and goodwill, report it in your newsletters, give admission tickets away to prime prospects, benefit from what you have done.
Sponsorship can be effective on many levels, from a simple exchange for naming rights of an event to much more complex arrangements. Whatever the relationship, businesses should always undertake sponsorship agreements for the right reasons and understand the layers of detail that need to be thought through. Whilst it should be a mutually beneficial activity nothing can be taken for granted and all expectations should be clearly spelt out and contracted. Just ask the New Zealand Rugby Union why they missed out on a piece of the Rugby World cup that took place in Australia! Stadiums could not be cleared of encumbering advertisers to make way for the international sponsors, an important example of why all eventualities should be covered contractually.
Whether it’s a smaller business, sponsoring a stock car and driver or a major group getting involved with a national team, good sponsorship at any level should be beneficial to both parties, a natural fit that lifts profile and enhances image.
New World and New Zealand Netball is an appropriate sponsorship, it focuses on women, healthy living, an excellent image, and look at the way in which the sponsorship is expressed on television, in-store posters, in daily press and personal appearances. Media evaluations alone likely justify the costs involved. The goodwill in being a good corporate citizen who associates itself with its key customers’ interests is a real bonus.
WAVE have developed well honed techniques that enable us to study products or services and create brands and positioning that endure and are relevant to their markets. That’s also why we sponsor the “Excellence in Brand, Marketing and Design” award within the Westpac Tauranga Business Awards. It’s what we know; it’s our marketplace and positions us appropriately before our community.
For more information about this project contact Glenn Dougal gd@wavedesign.co.nz
